Page 108 of The Other Lady Vanishes

Jake reached the body, crouched, and checked for a pulse. He looked up at Adelaide, his eyes burning hot with the aftereffects of violence. He shook his head once.

He retrieved his fountain pen, wiped it clean on Paxton’s white linen jacket, and got to his feet. He looked up at Adelaide again.

“Are you all right?” he said.

“Yes,” she said. “Yes, I think so. What about you?”

“I’m all right,” he said.

The Duchess appeared at the top of the stairs.

“One of the servants told me that you had returned to pick up something that you had left behind, dear,” she said to Adelaide. “That was a very risky thing to do.”

“Yes, I know,” Adelaide said. “That’s why Mr. Truett accompanied me. Don’t tell anyone but he’s a government agent who is on a secret mission. That man on the floor is a criminal who came here to steal some drugs.”

“The deliveryman?” the Duchess said. “I’m not surprised to hearthat he’s a thief. I never did trust him. Whenever he showed up a few valuables always went missing. He was here the night you left, my dear. He was wearing a surgical mask, of all things, but I recognized him. A very rude man.”

The orderlies appeared at the bottom of the staircase. They were disheveled and flushed.

“We thought we heard gunshots,” Buddy said. “We took cover.”

“Gosh, that was quick thinking,” Adelaide said. “I don’t suppose it occurred to you to come to our rescue instead of cowering in the nurses’ station?”

The Duchess tsk-tsked. “So hard to get good staff these days.”

Victor eyed Paxton’s body. “What the hell happened to him?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” the Duchess said in regal tones. “He fell down the stairs.”

Buddy and Victor both eyed Jake with suspicion.

“He fell, huh?” Victor said.

“Obviously,” Jake said. He didn’t offer anything else.

Sirens sounded in the distance.

Adelaide looked at Victor. “Did you call the police?”

“No,” Victor said. “We couldn’t get to a phone.”

“Oh, right, because you were taking cover in the nurses’ station,” Adelaide said.

“Who called the cops?” Buddy asked, bewildered.

“I think I know,” Jake said. He looked at Adelaide. “Come with me. There’s something we need to do before the police get here.”

“All right,” Adelaide said.

The Duchess looked at Jake. “You’ll take good care of her, won’t you? Wouldn’t want her to end up back in that dreadful room at the end of the hall.”

“Trust me,” Jake said, “I’ll make certain that Adelaide never returns to the Rushbrook Sanitarium.”

The Duchess smiled in approval. “She doesn’t belong here.”

Jake looked at Adelaide. “I know. She belongs with me.”

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